My Own Life
by Arisuke
Summary: A story of a marine from the beginning to the end.
1. First Mission in Lucid

**AN: I don't own Halo and its franchise, only this story and its characters. Please read and review.**

Halo: My own life

Chapter 1 – First Mission

Aboard UNSC frigate, _**Moving Towards Hell**_, 0811 hours, approximately 46 minutes before reaching an Outer Colonies agricultural planet called Lucid.

"Good morning, Thirty-First Marine," greeted Colonel Greshovic, via live telecast from UNSC frigate _**Live For Tomorrow**_.

"Good morning, sir," answered everyone as we stood up.

"ONI has gathered an interesting piece of intelligence and assigned Combat Group Fox to it. After our victory at Harvest…"

_Barely_, I thought.

"…the Covenant will be hitting us at full force. One of their targets is the agricultural planet called Lucid in the Outer Colonies. ONI believed that they are coming in less than five days from now and we are supposed to get more than three hundred thousand farmers out of the Covenant's way."

There was silence in the briefing room.

"Fortunately, the concentration of those farmers is on this continent," he continued as the screen changed to a map of the planet. There were four continents and the one the colonel was referring to was the third largest.

"The Thirty-First Marine Regiment will be deployed in the north sector. Battalion commanders will brief you on your specific duties. Greshovic out."

In less than 30 minutes, all of us had known our specific duties. After that, we quickly dispersed to our own companies. As the squadrons got out of Slipspace, two marine companies hopped onto their designated Albatross Heavy Dropships while the other two huddled into the Pelicans.

"Hey, Mark," called out one marine to me in an Albatross.

"Yes, Damian?"

"How do you feel, man? About your first mission as a marine, that is."

"I don't know what to feel. Okay, I guess."

"Okay? Don't you feel excited at all? To me, I feel excited, but I want to get into the action, man. I want to be on the front lines and kill those bastards after what they did to Harvest. I wish they would attack Lucid right now."

Everybody looked at him. "Be careful what you wish for, private," said a sergeant.

The 31st Marine Regiment landed on the northern sector of the continent. Before we could move in for our predetermined duties, the company's CO reminded us with a few words.

"All right, boys and girls, there are no Covenant here, so do not empty your mags for no reason, or do anything outside regulation. If I find anything wrong, I'll shoot your fucking asses."

That was what Captain Schuller said and it was effective if you believed the story that was sticking to him. I heard that he had shot one of his own sergeants after catching him in the act of raping a female civilian. There was an inquiry of course, but with the solid evidence to back him up, he was off the hook after 30 minutes of deliberation.

His actions told me that all he wanted in his company were real soldiers; soldiers who do their job protecting the government and the people it served, and not taking advantage of the population for their own personal satisfaction. Having that kind of story following him made everyone fear and respect him. I certainly did.

Since my company and another used Albatrosses, our job focused on the industrial part of the northern sector. Coming from an industrial planet myself, the buildings here were obviously nothing compared to my home. Instead of the large chimneys of plants or refineries and the smell of smoke, oil or other chemicals, there was nothing here except two or three food processing factories, a large power generating plant, a small oil refinery and a few supply depots. Seeing all these buildings made me think that this place was certainly quieter.

The plan was to gather all the farmers at the power plant in an orderly manner and ship them off to the space port in the middle of the continent. It seemed that local law enforcement was already doing a good job at it when we saw police officers herding a few hundred people to the power plant. However, it was obvious that they were understaffed. That was why the regiment separated into two and used Pelicans to go to the outlying farmlands to help speed up the process.

We arrived at the planet at around 0953 and immediately started work. It was 36 hours later that I finished my shift.

"Come on Stewart, time for us to rest. Thirty six hours is definitely a long time," said a marine to me.

"Alright Marcus." The two of us sat on the ground at one corner of a factory outside of the plant. More people were still coming in and ships were still busy flying around. I wondered if those pilots managed to get their rest.

As we took out our rations and consumed it, three other marines came and joined us. It was three of my friends that I made in this regiment, even though I knew one of them since boot camp.

The first one was of course Damian Hall Jackson. He came from an Outer Colonies agricultural planet of Famine. Despite the name, Famine was one of the main producers of food in the Outer Colonies.

The second was Sarah Wright from Golden Ambience. Her planet was located in the Inner Colonies that specializes in corn plantation and ore mining. Apparently, that was how the planet got its name.

The third was Philippe Marneau, coming from Harsden. The planet was also an Outer Colonies agricultural producer.

As for Marcus Yang, he came from New London. His home was an industrial planet located in Outer Colonies.

For me, my name is Mark Stewart and I came from the planet called Rylus located in the Inner Colonies.

"So how long do we need to rest?" Sarah asked.

"Two hours," replied Marcus. "After that, back to business."

"That short, huh?" said Philippe. "Just how many people are there left out here anyway?"

"There are about three hundred twenty three thousand farmers on this planet. Since the northern sector is not as fertile as other sectors, there are about seventy two thousand people living here. For the thirty six hours that we have been here, less than two thirds I guess."

"Are you making that up, Mark, or did you really calculate?" asked Philippe.

"I read the general summary about this planet when _**Moving Towards Hell**_ was moving into orbit. As for the numbers, I was just figuring it out."

"Figuring, huh? You are full of BS, you know that," said Damian.

"Anyway, we still got a lot of things to do. That is why we have two hours to rest," said Marcus.

"And lots of chocolate energy bars to consume," I said.

"Yeah," everybody responded, smiling.

"So, for a planet of no importance at all, is Cole Protocol really useful?" Philippe asked.

"I think it is meant for the ships in this case. But the main question remains, will it work in the long run?"

"That depends on how long the war will take, Marcus. It has been six years since the war started at Harvest. I got the feeling it won't end so fast," I responded.

"The Thirtieth, Thirty-First, Thirty-Second and Thirty-Third. Four regiments just to get Lucidian farmers out of here. Isn't that overkill?"

"Maybe so, Damian. But in a way, the faster the better," said Marcus.

"Well, we better get some sleep," said Sarah. Everyone nodded in agreement and tried to sleep.

Third day on the planet, short rests seemed to be the best thing. There was a third left in the northern sector. To tell the truth, the evacuation was moving quite fast. As the people were getting less, we were sent out in Warthogs to help any farmers that were left out. Marcus and I were at the countryside, following our orders.

"I would have lived on this planet for a change. Quite peaceful."

"And I would agree with you too, Mark, if it wasn't for the Insurrectionist."

"What do you mean, Marcus?"

"This planet used to be a base for the rebels 30 years ago, until the UNSC came and captured the leaders. They were tried and executed within a week. I won't be surprised if some of these farmers are still part of the rebel group."

"A week? That sounds draconian, even though the rebels are guilty."

"They deserve it, Mark. No less."

"Someone you know got hurt, Marcus?"

He didn't answer and kept on driving.

"You certainly know the history of this planet. You're a historian or something, Marcus?"

"No, but you're not the only one who reads."

I chuckled, "So what did the Pelican users miss that require us to search for anybody?"

"They concentrated on residential areas and towns only, Mark. Too many people to cover. A family or two might escape."

"If there is anybody trying to escape from us while knowing that the Covenant is coming, they certainly want to die."

Marcus nodded in agreement. We finally came to a hill and I noticed a figure at the top of it.

"There's someone on the hill, Marcus. Stop the Warthog."

Marcus stopped the vehicle and I got out quickly and ran up the hill. At the top I saw an old woman facing two tombstones.

"I know what you want from me, soldier, and I wouldn't leave my family."

"This planet is being evacuated, ma'am. You should get out of here now, it is not safe anymore."

"I'm old, soldier, and this is my home. I don't want to die in a foreign land."

"No one is asking you to, ma'am. When this war is over, you can come back here and do whatever you want."

"Do you know when will this war gonna end?"

That question got me stumped. This Human-Covenant War was into the sixth year and looking at the rate it was going, it could be one long war.

"No one does, soldier. That is why I want to stay here with them."

"Don't you have any other children or relatives to care for, ma'am?

"My family died a long time ago. I'm the only one left alive."

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but you should…"

"I'm seventy eight years old already. There is no point for a lonely old woman to escape from here and die in someplace else. I don't want my body to be kept in storage for only God knows how long this war will take before I can go home," she said and began to cry.

I had just decided to leave her alone when she suddenly took out a small pistol and shot her head. I was terribly shocked by her action. Marcus was running up the hill, obviously heard the gunshot.

"What the hell happened here, Mark?"

"She committed suicide. She can't bare the thought of leaving this planet."

"And you didn't stop her?"

"I didn't even know that she had a gun. If I had known, I would have brought her with us."

"Should we report this to the sarge?"

"Yeah we should. But right now, we should bury her with her family."

"I agree with you, Mark. The thing is, we don't have any entrenching tool and there aren't any rocks up here."

"A lot of flowers up here though. Line her up and put some flowers in her hands."

After fifteen minutes, everything was done. I picked up the pistol and put it on top of one of the tombstones. We left the hill after that.

"How are we going to tell him?"

Knowing who Marcus was referring to, I simply reply, "The truth."

The evacuation was a success. Everyone was off the planet less than 11 hours left on the clock. Marcus and I knew that it was not everyone.

Considering the situation that Lucid don't have any important data and the Covenant was 11 hours away, Cole Protocol was not enacted. This was partly because the Slipspace trail left by all UNSC ships would dissipate within 6 hours. Knowing that, I'm glad actually since it was safe to say that all the intelligence gathered by ONI were accurate.

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	2. Advance Campaign - Starting

**AN: I don't own Halo and its franchise, only this story and its characters. Please read and review.**

Halo: My own life

Chapter 2 – Second Mission

31st Marine Regimental Barracks, Fort Laurendale, planet Reach, 1320 hours.

It was barely fifteen hours after getting back from Lucid that we were called for a battalion briefing. After lunch, 1st Battalion had gathered in a hall.

"Ten-hut!" shouted the battalion adjutant.

All of us stood up and a marine with a standard battle dress came in.

"Good afternoon, First Battalion," greeted Major Zhou.

"Good afternoon, sir."

"As you were. I hope you all are well rested, had a hot chow and a hot shower. Alright, back to business," he said as he took a remote and press a button.

The screen behind him came to life and showed a planet.

"Advance. That is the name of this planet that deals with scientific research and development. Eight hours ago, our government lost contact with Advance and a UNSC Prowler was sent there. About half an hour ago, the Prowler transmitted that they had detected three Covenant ships resting at the bright side of the planet."

There were whispers of disbelief.

"Through the prowler's long range scanners, the Covenant army were already down there and scattered all across the globe, but not too concentrated on one particular continent. Like Harvest, it seems that they are searching for something and obviously they don't even know where it is," said Major Zhou, as he stopped to take a breather.

"The Thirty First will be the first regiment to land and set up a base here, Continent Alpha" he said, as he pointed to the smallest continent when the screen was zoomed to it.

"According to the Prowler, there are at least a battalion-sized Covenant army in this continent. The ship had also identified four Covenant anti-aircraft batteries. The first is in the northwest, second in the east, third in the south and lastly, southwest."

Major Zhou paused to take a breather. "A platoon of ODSTs will be joining us for this mission to soften our landing zone. More specifically, the southern side of the continent. After that, the ODSTs will go on to destroy the batteries while we will clean out the remaining enemies left by them. After setting up a forward base, we must hold it until the rest of our regiment and tank division arrives."

He stopped again to look at us. "After that, we will act as a reserve unit for the Second and Third Battalion in accomplishing a continent take over. Questions?"

"What about the people of Advance, sir? Did they escape from the Covenant?" asked a captain.

"I don't know. As far as I know, there are no reports of any Advance ships docking anywhere. However, they must be considered as casualties of war. If there are any survivors, we will, no, we must help them."

Everyone in the room knew what he meant.

"What about the three Covenant ships, sir?" asked a lieutenant.

"All eight destroyers of this combat group will engage them and two more destroyers from Combat Group Varsity will arrive soon. I know that you all are worried after knowing the outcome of all the space battles, but let's just hope the ODSTs finish their work quickly so that our frigates would reinforce the destroyers."

"Sir, why south? The northwest seems to be the practical choice since it is an open ground," asked Captain Schuller.

Major Zhou looked at the captain hard; obviously don't like his own strategy to be questioned. "It is, but the south is close to the mountains. If we are to be push back, we can take cover in the mountains and retaliate as guerrillas," Major Zhou replied.

I can see that the major tolerated Captain Schuller's questions as everyone knew the captain was dedicated to his job and him men.

"Alright, that will be all. Our ships will be leaving in less than ninety minutes. Be on our ship by then," said Major Zhou.

"That was why our hangar was brimming with activity for the past two hours," said Damian as 1st Battalion was moving out from the hall.

"How do you know that, Damian?" asked Sarah.

"Well, I have been moving around."

Aboard UNSC _**Moving Towards Hell**_, approximately 62 minutes before reaching Advance.

"Damn it man, I can't believe they are on _**Diversity**_."

"Who are you talking about, Damian?" I asked.

"ODSTs, of course. They are the best soldiers in the galaxy, man. I want to meet them."

"I thought the Spartans are the best."

"They are, but that is because the Spartans are using the best and the latest hardware around. They are nothing without those MJOLNIR suits," said Marcus.

"Yes, but you have to admit that they bring positive results from their near impossible missions."

"Fuck," said Damian suddenly.

"What?" I asked.

"I just mentioned ODSTs and you two turned it into a serious crap that I don't give a shit. I don't know why I mixed with you guys."

"I thought you mixed with us was because of my pretty face," said Sarah.

Everyone laughed at that.

"Why do both of you always argue about politics and morality stuff?" asked Philippe.

"Argue? We're not arguing, we debating," answered Marcus. "Mark and I talk a lot since we're practically in the same squad."

"First Battalion, get ready to deploy," the battalion adjutant suddenly shouted.

"Company A, gather around," shouted Captain Schuller.

"Well, that's us, Marcus, Damian. See you around, Company B," I said, referring to Sarah and Philippe.

"See you around, Company A," replied Sarah.

"Alright, boys and girls, last minute walkthrough. Company A will be landing at Sector One, the eastern side. Each squad will be having one M-Forty-One rocket launcher in case we will be facing enemy Wraith tanks. To fully clean up Sector One, our starting point will be on Hill-Zero-One-Zero. From the hill, we will be moving fifteen kilometers northward and there, we will hold the line," said Captain Schuller. "Clear?"

"Crystal clear, sir," said one of the lieutenants.

"Okay, let's go."

Marcus and I followed our 3rd squad to our designated Pelican. All of us were ready, physically and mentally to go down there, but we have to wait for the ODSTs to jump down and finish their job. That wait, however, seemed to take a long time.

It was less than an hour later that Sergeant Verril, the commanding sergeant 3rd Squad, received a call. He then walked out of the Pelican. After a minute or two, he came back and was contemplating on what he should say.

"3rd Squad, listen up," said the sergeant in a loud voice. "I just had a talk with the lieutenant. He said that he had received orders to destroy the Covenant AA battery located in the eastern side."

"Aren't the ODSTs supposed to destroy that?" a marine asked.

"That particular group had found the surviving Advancers. So, they had been reassigned to clear up the Covenant that had surrounded the survivors."

I can see that everyone was frustrated. "Where will the 5th Platoon be landing, sir?" I asked.

"We will be landing 12 kilometres north of that battery."

"But that will be within their battery's range, isn't it?" asked another marine.

"It is. That is a risk that we'll have to take if we are to destroy that thing as fast as possible."

"As fast as possible? Will we be using Warthogs, sir?"

"No, we have to run as fast as we can."

"If we run, the Covenant could flank us. Isn't it better if we landed much nearer to the battery?"

"Yes, it would be nice if we are nearer. But they have Anti-Aircraft Wraiths, which can be double as an Anti-Infantry. Before you could fire, you'll be dead. We could take the risk from the battery but not from the Wraiths."

"After destroying the battery, where should we go? The 1st Battalion won't be coming here until thirty minutes after all batteries are destroyed."

"We have to stay put at that place until the rest of the battalion arrives."

"When will we be deployed, sir?" asked Marcus.

Sergeant Verril looked at his watch, "In five minutes. Saddle up, marines."

We landed exactly 12 kilometres north of our target. Fortunately though, through the talented skills of the Pelican pilots, the whole platoon managed to land safely. As we got out, we could see the enemy moving and firing at us. In turn we fired back. Charging through those Covenant soldiers scared me, but remembering my training and what we were supposed to do, I just braved it out.

To tell the truth, 3rd Squad managed to study, even for a short while, the area surrounding our target during mid-flight. The plan was we, along with 2nd Squad, were to create a diversion exactly north of the target. 1st and 4th Squads would then flank Covenant pinning down on us. With all these distractions, the 5th Squad will destroy the battery.

We finally reached our destination in slightly more than 15 minutes. If it wasn't for someone from 1st Squad that suggested a shorter and safer route, we would have faced more Covenant soldiers and take more than half an hour to get there.

There wasn't much protection at all. The only place that we were able to take cover was slightly thick undergrowth. It was useful of course against infantry, but still vulnerable against Wraith tanks.

Sergeant Verril looked through the scope, "I see three Wraith tanks, four Elite Minors, one Elite Major and one big bunch of Grunts. This is going to be hard."

"I agree with you, Verril," said Sergeant Kratos, "but we still need to take out that battery. Both our heavy weapons will destroy the closest Wraith. My sniper will kill the Major."

"Your sniper? As if I'll let you do that."

"Rock-Paper-Scissors?"

"Yeah."

The antics of the two sergeants made me chuckle. I saw their hand movements.

"Oh fuck."

"Sorry Kratos," said Sergeant Verril, smiling. "_Semper Fi_," Sergeant Verril said as he held out his right hand to Sergeant Kratos.

"_Semper Fi_, Verril," replied Sergeant Kratos as he shook the other sergeant's hand and returned to his own squad.

"Hoomer?"

"Sir?" replied a female marine.

"You will kill the Elite Major. As soon as the First and Fourth are in position, take the shot. Evans?"

"Sir?" this time a male replied.

"Prep your M-Forty-One. After Hoomer had taken her shot, fire at that tank. The Second Squad will follow suit."

"Yes, sir."

"All right marines, let's get ready for this."

"I wonder how Damian is faring right now in Fifth Squad," I said.

"Yeah, me too," replied Marcus.

"Don't worry about your friend, boys. With the lieutenant leading them, I'm sure he will be safe and sound," said Corporal Cassenbaum, obviously overhearing what we said.

"First Squad in position."

"Fourth Squad in position."

"Second and Third, show some fireworks," ordered the lieutenant.

"Yes, sir," replied the two sergeants.

The death of the Elite Major was a good cause for confusion, but gave away our position. Every Covenant weapon was quickly concentrated on our position, except for the battery. As planned, the closest Wraith tank was destroyed by two rockets.

It hadn't bugged me at first, but right then, I began to have mixed feelings being in battle. Fear and adrenaline don't bode well together and they made me freeze, to tell the truth. I took a few deep breaths and finally calmed down. My mind suddenly focused on shooting at the Covenant. I aimed my rifle at a Grunt and fired. I never thought much about it when the Grunt fell to the ground as my mind went blank, just concentrating on the job at hand.

I don't know about 2nd Squad, but a Wraith tank was moving slowly toward our position. Sergeant Verril ordered Evans to follow him, as all of us continued on firing. As I was reloading my rifle, I looked around at my squad. Two marines were lying lifelessly on the ground; one of them was Corporal Cassenbaum.

There was a sound of a rocket being launched. It didn't destroy the tank of course, but the tank was unable to move. Glancing at the sergeant's position, I saw him putting a rocket into the Evans' launcher. I resumed firing when I heard another launching of a rocket. I thought it could be from Evans, but the sound was slightly further, as if it was coming from 2nd Squad.

The marine beside me was not firing her weapon since the start. I first thought the marine was killed, but when I glanced at her, she was actually alive. However, her eyes showed me that she was afraid. Now I remember her. She was also a new member of the squad and joined around the same time as Marcus and I.

"Susan, look at me," I said to her. She was not responsive and it was clear she was spacing out.

"Look at me, Susan," I said again in a louder tone. This time, she looked at me. "Susan, I need your help. I need you to help me in putting a pressure in this end of the line. Can you do that?" I waited for her answer.

"Yeah," she responded. It was soft, but I was able to hear it.

"All right, follow my lead." As I said that, I shot two short bursts from my rifle. Both times hit their intended targets. She then fired her weapon and managed to kill a few Grunts herself. I can't really explain it, but I got a sudden urge to get up to my knees in getting a clearer line of sight. Something caught my eye. I turned and saw a plasma energy heading towards my head. Suddenly I felt two hands trying to pull me down. The momentum of pulling me down just in time made the plasma energy grazed my helmet.

"Mark, you all right?" asked my good friend, Marcus.

"Yeah, I'm still alive," I replied.

"Shit man, are you crazy? You want to die here, is it?" asked Marcus in annoyance.

"No, of course not." When I came to my realization, I had unknowingly put my head on top of the female marine's chest next to me. I looked at her and she had the look of a surprised face and also a slight embarrassment.

"Sorry about that," I said quickly as I returned to my spot and resumed firing. By the time I restarted, Covenant forces had already been divided into two groups; one facing us and the other was facing another force behind them. Seeing that, I had to assume the 1st and 4th Squads were flanking them. I then saw the Wraith tank from our side was burning brightly. I was glad for that.

It was almost three minutes later that 5th Squad called in to give us a heads-up about a bomb being placed in the AA battery. Hearing that, both the 1st and 4th quickly moved back to their former positions with some the Covenant following them.

We all heard explosions from the structure itself. Shrapnel rained down on us and we quickly took cover. Finally, the battery crumbled with a thundering roar. Large pieces of the AA battery landed on some of the Covenant soldiers, among them were two Elite Minors. As for the remaining enemies, we quickly shot all of them down. I'm quite thankful actually that all 3 Wraith tanks were destroyed. There was actually a fourth tank, but 5th Squad had destroyed it.

"Lieutenant Castro to First Battalion, do you read?"

"This is Lieutenant Johan, what's your status?" asked the battalion adjutant.

"We have accomplished our mission. You may now send in the rest of the battalion."

"Will do. Good job, lieutenant."

"All right. Fifth Platoon, reinforcements are en route. Let's secure this area for them. Third Squad, check the heap for any survivors. If there are any, we better keep them alive."

There were 8 soldiers left in the squad. The squad's second-in-command, Corporal Cassenbaum and a gunner, Private First Class Nikijama were killed earlier. Nikijama had been in the squad a few months longer than Marcus, Susan and I. Cassenbaum had served for more than 3 years in the squad.

Sergeant Verril picked me to accompany him searching through the rubble. "I heard from Second Squad that you motivated a fellow marine."

I looked at him, "I didn't motivate her, sir. I just ask for her help. Besides, she, Marcus and I are still greenhorns."

"You are, but you have a leadership quality. Like all skills, the more you train, the better you become."

"How can I become a leader when I almost died myself today, sir? The graze on my helmet is the proof of that."

"In this job, people might die when they make mistakes. If they managed to survive that mistake, all the more reason not to repeat it. Will you make the same mistake you made earlier, private?"

"No, I won't, sir."

"You sure about that?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Good, remember what you said, private."

"Sir, will you choose someone from within or outside the squad to replace Corporal Cassenbaum?"

"This mission is not over yet. Don't think too far ahead, private."

"Yes, sir."

It was already 15 minutes checking the rubble. I was glad there was no sign of Covenant coming towards our position as there was no point of fighting for something that had been destroyed. Every Covenant body that had been found was lifeless, which made me wonder if we should continue on searching.

All of a sudden, I heard a loud noise behind me. I quickly turned and saw an Elite grabbing Sergeant Verril's neck. Then I heard a cracking sound. Before I could raise my rifle, the alien threw the sergeant's body at me, knocking me down.

The Elite was moving towards me, even though the alien was limping. All through the panic, I managed to push the body aside and took out my M6 gun. The Elite suddenly shouted with all his mandibles open.

Seeing this opportunity, I quickly aimed and fired at the Elite's opened mouth. It took a few steps back. I was hoping it would die, but it managed to survive the shot. I fired again at the neck and it fell down to the ground. I slowly got up, breathing heavily, with my M6 still aiming at the Elite.

As I got closer, a human hand suddenly held my arm. "Lower your gun, private. The Elite is already dead."

I looked at the marine and it was Sergeant Kratos. 3rd Squad had already gathered around with a few others. I saw Hoomer checking on the sergeant. She then shook her head and looked at me.

"He's dead," she said. "Just what the hell happened here, Stewart?"

Everyone there was looking at me. "The Elite came out from the rubble all of a sudden and attacked the sergeant. I never had the chance to save him. I'm sorry."

"No chance? Or you froze?" she asked angrily shouting at me

"Hey, Hoomer, he already explained himself. Take it easy," said Marcus, backing me up.

"You stay out of this, greenhorn. I will get you for this."

"Is that a threat, PFC Hoomer?" asked Sergeant Kratos. "Because if it is, I'll sign you up for disciplinary action."

Hoomer looked at him and left.

"Don't worry about her, private. And don't blame yourself. I saw the whole thing when I heard the loud noise. I'll help you out in filing the report."

"What happened here?" asked the lieutenant when he arrived.

"Verril's dead, sir. Killed by the Elite," replied Sergeant Kratos.

The lieutenant scrutinized the two bodies. "I want a full report after all of this. I'll lead Third Squad."

"Yes, sir. Private, stand up high. You did nothing wrong here. And one more thing, confidence is a very important thing to become a leader. Be strong and stand firm on your answers," said Sergeant Kratos.

"Yes, sir."

"You all right, Mark?" asked Marcus. Susan was looking at me with her round eyes.

"Yeah, I am," I replied, as I saw Evans making Sergeant Verril's body more presentable.

Nothing much happened for more than 1 hour we had been here. Not one Covenant soldier ever came here anymore, but I heard that they attacked the rest of 1st Battalion hard. Fortunately, the Covenant was pushed back and the battalion suffered minor casualties thanks to the terrain.

The entire 31st Marine finally arrived with a tank division less than 40 minutes after the Covenant was pushed back. We hooked up with the regiment half an hour later and received our much needed R & R.

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	3. Advance Campaign - Next Phase

**AN: I don't own Halo and its franchise, only this story and its characters. Please read and review.**

Halo: My own life

Chapter 3 – Third Mission

It had been an hour since the second mission. 2nd and 3rd Battalions had just ridden out from the base after nearly half an hour of mission briefing.

The 30th, the 32nd and the 33rd Marine Regiments were on their way down to the planet's surface. The three regiments were supposed to come down soon after the continent takeover, but the destroyers of Combat Group Fox were not doing so well and needed all available ships.

3rd Squad was sitting on the ground, just within the newly-established makeshift base.

"The time right now on Reach is nineteen thirty three hours, based on the location of Fort Laurendale. On this planet, in this part of the continent, the time is fifteen twenty three hours."

"What's your point, Evans?" asked Lance Corporal Urumee Rluma.

"Just a talking clock," he replied, smiling.

All of us, except Hoomer, smiled. Looking at the remaining members of 3rd Squad, I felt sad that, when this campaign ends, not all of us would be coming back home to Reach alive. Three dead, two of them were the squad's CO and his second-in-command.

That only leave the squad with Lance Corporal Urumee Rluma; Private First Class Tammy Hoomer; Corpsman Kelly Quack; Private, Technical Class – Heavy Munitions, Cal Evans; Private Susan Sum; Private Marcus Yang; and lastly, me, Private Mark Stewart.

It was obvious that Rluma would lead the squad. As for second-in-command, it was Hoomer, but looking on how she behaved made me wonder if she really could lead. Even though Evans made a joke a minute ago, the mood didn't last long. Everyone was still trying to take in what had happen more than two hours ago.

Lieutenant Castro came up to us, "Ok, Third Squad, listen up. Officially and obviously, Lance Corporal Rluma is your new commanding officer. It would take at least a couple of days to confirm your new position as sergeant, Rluma. Any questions?"

The squad's corpsman raised her hand, "Does that mean Hoomer will be our second-in-command?"

Everyone looked at her.

Lieutenant Castro was actually deliberating on what to say. "No, she won't be. Evans will."

3rd Squad was surprised by that answer. "I know that you're all surprise since you are the second highest ranking in this squad, Hoomer. But I have to take account of what Sergeant Verril had said long ago and what you said to your squad member earlier today."

Hoomer was clenching her fist and took a quick glance at me.

"You ready for the job, Evans?"

"No, I'm not ready, sir," said Evans, nervously.

"None of us are ready for this kind of job, Evans. Alright," replied the lieutenant as he stood up. "Fifth Platoon, gather around me!" he shouted.

He waited for everyone to gather. "Okay, Second and Third Battalions have already started their mission. First Battalion is now required to help them out."

"But, sir, we did our part in securing a footing on this planet," responded a marine.

"I understand your frustration, but you should also understand that wars are unpredictable. The conditions up there," said the lieutenant, gesturing his right index finger up to the sky, "are not good, and that is why other regiments are coming down now."

Lieutenant Castro took a long breath, "Third Battalion, together with the Fifteenth Armoured Division, is going to cut Covenant forces into two. Second Battalion will flank from the right, while the First will take on the left. We will be using both Pelicans and Warthogs this time. Questions?"

Nobody answered.

"All right, Fifth Platoon, let's move out."

4th and 5th Squads rode on the Pelicans while the other squads used the Warthogs. I was beginning to wonder if using a Pelican was a suitable choice if we were to face a Banshee. We hooked up first with the rest of Company A, and then slowly merged with other companies into 1st Battalion.

"The road is kinda bouncy, don't you think?" I asked.

"Sorry," replied Marcus.

Marcus was once again the driver while I manned the anti-aircraft turret. Susan was also with us as our second shooter. Getting prepared for battle, I had to prime the weapon since we were given a Warthog with an anti-aircraft turret. Still, I was nervous as I have the trouble of getting use to calming down before the mission even with all those experiences from boot camp and the previous missions.

1st Battalion was moving quite fast towards our mission objectives. Suddenly we heard a strange sound. I never gave a second thought about what it was when someone shouted. Hearing that, I aimed the turret upwards and I was surprise. Banshees were moving very fast toward us.

I fired the turret, but was unable to shoot down any one of them. Only those using rocket launchers and plasma cannons were able to destroy the ships. Something caught my eye from my right and I looked. A Banshee was flying towards us and at the same time shooting its weapons at the nearby Warthogs.

I turned and aimed at the ship. As it got nearer, I quickly fired as hard as I could. Unexpectedly, the Banshee exploded from its side, past our Warthog and crashed behind us. I sighed in relief and both Marcus and Susan thanked me.

We arrived at our destination about 6 minutes later and it was not what I expected.

Immediately after we arrived, everything became very hectic. Even the previous mission was not as bad as this. The adrenalin was pumping into of my body very fast and it made me focus on firing the turret.

I don't really know how long I fired the weapon, but it was quite long enough. Suddenly, a powerful force pushed me backwards and at the same time, I felt a sharp pain just above my right ribs. I grunted in pain and cursed at the same time. I would have fallen from the vehicle if I hadn't held onto the turret's handle tightly. I looked at the source of the pain and saw a spike protruding from my body. The area around the spike was drenched with my blood and it was getting bigger.

"Mark, what's wrong?" asked Marcus as he noticed I had stopped firing.

Susan turned to look, "Shit. Mark's been hit." Susan got up and moved towards me.

I could hear Marcus cursing softly while Susan was taking out her First Aid Kit.

"No, Susan. Put me at the passenger seat."

"But you're wounded."

"I'll survive this, Susan. Just put me there."

She just nodded and helped me getting onto the seat.

"Now, man the turret."

"But..."

"NOW!"

With that, she quickly manned the turret while I aimed my rifle. I could hear Marcus calling for a corpsman, but I didn't really bother to hear the rest.

"You sure you can survive this? You look pretty bad."

"Just keep driving, Marcus."

Bearing through the pain and the dizziness that was beginning to affect me, I fired at the enemy forces. After a while though, the pain seemed to decrease slowly and the dizziness became worse. I felt the wet area became larger, knowing what had caused it.

"Fuck this, man. I'm getting you out of here," said Marcus, as he took a turn against the traffic. Obviously he saw what was happening to me.

I know it was against orders, but I became too damn weak to do anything. My eyes became heavier even though I tried so hard to stay awake. Slowly, I became much weaker and finally succumbed to unconsciousness.

The last thing I heard before I closed my eyes was Marcus shouting my name. In my mind, it felt hard to believe that I would die right now and that this could be the last thing I do.


	4. Advance Campaign - Diversion

**AN: I don't own Halo and its franchise, only this story and its characters. Please read and review.**

Halo: My own life

Chapter 4 – Fourth Mission

Continent Alpha, Planet Advance, 1901 hours local time

I woke up, looking upwards at a white canvas. At first, I wonder where I was, but as I began to process my bearings, I started to hear loud sounds. My first instinct was to check my body and I discovered that I was lying on a bed. It was more of a stretcher though than a bed. Large bandages were wrapped around my chest and I was still wearing my standard battle dress pants. Having just them on made me feel cold.

Looking around, I saw many other stretchers and on top of them were wounded marines. The place didn't seem to be busy at all and these marines were all patched up. I tried to get up, but the sharp pain was still there, forcing me to lie down again.

"Don't move, marine, or you're be opening up your wound," a male voice said.

A man was heading towards me. Based on the marking on his uniform, he was a naval medical officer.

"Welcome back to the living, Private..." he said as he checked a chart, "Stewart."

"How long have I been out cold, doc?" I asked as the doctor checked all my signs.

"Almost three hours. You came in pretty bad, if it wasn't for your corpsman, you would have died on the spot."

"How's my wound?"

"You're a lucky man actually. The spike lodged exactly between your right lung and liver. A little bit higher and it would have punctured your lung. If that happened, you wouldn't have made it in time."

"When can I get out? I need to go back to my unit."

"We had to cut open that wound to stitch up what was causing the blood loss. You should be fine now. Bio-foam is replaced every hour. You should be fully healed after three more hours. You hungry?"

"No, just thirsty."

"Okay, I will get you some water," he said and left.

"Hmph."

I looked around my surroundings and noticed that it was already night. There were bright lights coming from the strategically placed headlights, making the base well lit. The base was buzzing with activity of people shouting orders and vehicles moving. I could hear explosions in the distance.

I had to assume that the 31st had managed to drive out the Covenant from this continent and the other regiments had already started advancing into Continent Beta.

* * *

1903 hours, local time

There were actually two or three naval medical officers and a few corpsmen acting as nurses in this field hospital. In a place like this, I was hoping that the corpsmen would at least exhibit some bedside manners, but knowing they saved lives at the risk of being killed themselves, I forgave them for being indifferent.

I was about to sleep when I noticed someone stood next to my bed. I looked up and saw Lieutenant Castro.

"Hello there, Private Stewart. Feeling all right?"

"Yes I am, sir."

"I heard from your squad that you managed to cripple a Banshee itself."

"Just luck, sir," I responded.

"True. It is not easy to cripple a Banshee using just LAAG. Even if the gunner managed to hit it, most of the time, the gunner would just kill the pilot. Anyway, it is a fine job you did. I brought you a chocolate energy bar as a promotion," he said smiling.

"Right. Thank you, sir," I chuckled, as I took the bar. "This is not the only thing you want to talk about, is it, sir?"

The lieutenant walked over to the bed opposite mine and took an idle chair. "Acting Sergeant Rluma has recommended you to be promoted to Lance Corporal," he said, as he sat down beside the bed.

"Lance Corporal? Isn't Hoomer to be more suitable for it?"

"You have been with your squad for more than a week, isn't it? You haven't noticed anything about Hoomer?"

"I noticed that she was closed to Verril and she is always in an angry mood."

"That was what we thought so too."

"Then why didn't Verril transfer her out?"

"He would, actually, if it wasn't for her highly regarded infiltration skills and excellent marksmanship."

"Infiltration and sniping? You mean against the Insurrectionists?"

"Yeah, she's very good at it, but as he had said two years ago, she is not a team player. The only reason she was willing to tag and play along with us was because of his orders."

"What are you going to do with her now, sir? I'm sure she is not going to back down from getting promoted."

"Don't worry, Stewart. She already asked for a transfer. As soon as we finish this campaign, she will pack her things."

The medical officer came in suddenly and gave me a bottle of water. I thanked him and he left.

"How close were they?" I asked.

"You better ask Sergeant Kratos. He is close to them. Well, enjoy your chocolate and water," he said as he stood up.

"Sir?"

"Yes, Private?"

"Do you think I should get the promotion?"

The lieutenant paused to think, "If they give it to you, you should take it."

After saying that, Lieutenant Castro left.

I looked at both the bottle and the chocolate, wondering which one to consume. I opened the bottle first and drank it.

* * *

1930 hours, local time

I was just finished eating the chocolate when Marcus and Susan came in.

"Where are the others?"

"Guard duty, as always. Our squad will take the next shift," said Marcus. "So, how are you, Mark?"

"I'm still alive, so that's a good thing."

"Nice. When can you get out, then?"

"I need to stay here for three more hours. They need to replace the bio foam every hour. How did the Thirty-First do in the previous engagement?"

"Well, we managed to drive the Covenant out of Alpha, but the whole regiment lost almost a third doing so. Most of our platoon members were lucky enough to survive all that. Thank God that our friends survived that too."

"Yeah, and I heard that the Third Battalion had lost slightly more than a third of their standing forces," said Susan.

"Really?" I sighed and shook my head, "My God, man. More battles like this and humanity won't stand a chance at all."

"But what can we do, Mark? If we don't do it, we would be sitting ducks here," said Marcus.

The three of us just kept quiet.

"Who gave you that chocolate, anyway?" asked Susan.

"Lieutenant Castro gave it to me as a promotion for that Banshee."

"He came here for _what_?" asked Marcus.

"To pass a rumour that Rluma recommended me for Lance Corporal, which I can safely assume that both of you knew about it," I said. I could see on their faces that they were not shocked by the news.

"Rluma told us of his intention. I wanted to surprise everyone, but it seems that the lieutenant had beaten me in getting to you."

"In that case, let me congratulate you, Mark," said Susan.

"It is not confirmed yet, Susan, so don't congratulate me. So how does Hoomer feel about this?"

"Angry obviously. She requested for an immediate transfer to another regiment," said Marcus.

"Immediate? Lieutenant Castro said she would be transferred after this campaign."

"He actually said that?" asked Marcus.

"Yeah," I responded.

"Your promotion is unconfirmed yet her transfer has already been done," said Marcus in frustration.

"Maybe they want to get rid of her from the frontline."

Marcus and Susan nodded.

"What happened to the ODSTs that were supposed to save the surviving Advancers?"

"They did their job saving the survivors. The Advancers are hiding here somewhere."

"So how did our combat group fare then?"

"Well, with the superior tactical skills of Rear Admiral Fornay, all three Covenant ships were destroyed at the cost of a destroyer and two frigates."

"Lost three to destroy three. Isn't that something?" I asked, rhetorically.

"Well, whatever the brass wants us do to, they better do it fast. The Covenant will certainly be back with a bigger force."

"I wonder how the three regiments doing right now. With no support, the Covenant has all the more reason to fight to the death."

* * *

Captain Schuller's quarters, 2255 hours, local time

I stood before a thin layer of door, and I could hear the captain was talking to someone inside. I knocked the door and a voice ordered me in.

I went in and saluted. "You called for me, sir?"

The captain saluted back, "Yes, I did, Private Stewart. Sit down."

"Thank you, sir," I replied and sat on the chair in front of the table. Sitting next to me was also a marine. An ODST, to be exact. His helmet was on the table and I noticed that there were two small white bars at the front of the helmet, denoting the rank of captain. At the side of the helmet was the name of 'Greystroke' in small fonts. A very long surname, maybe that's why it was written that way.

The ODST captain was playing with his unusual combat knife. It was much larger than a standard marine combat knife, but smaller than a machete. As he turned the knife, I saw two words. At one side of the blade, there was a word 'GREAT'. On the other side, 'FUCKER'. I wanted to laugh at the choice of words, but I got the feeling that it was the name of the knife, so I held back my smile.

"Are you fit enough for duty, private?"

"Yes, I am fit and ready, sir."

"Do you know why I called for you?" asked Captain Schuller.

"No, sir, I don't know."

"Acting Sergeant Rluma had strongly recommended you to become a Lance Corporal. His motion was also supported by Sergeant Kratos. Apparently, before his unfortunate death, Sergeant Verril had advised you a thing or two about being a leader. Am I right?"

"Yes, he did sir."

"Usually I don't this, but seeing that motion was supported by a sergeant from a different unit, I just want to know why."

"I don't know why Sergeant Kratos would support the motion, sir. I didn't do enough to get it."

"I read your file, private. In one of your fighting simulations during your time in boot camp, you did exceptionally well. You were recommended to be a sergeant, yet you declined the promotion. Why?"

I paused, thinking of a good reason. "I was trying to salvage a losing situation. In the end, I still lost. If it was a real situation, I would be dead. There is no point of leading a squad if I'm already dead, sir. That was why I declined the promotion."

"Inspiring once is not good enough," deliberated Captain Schuller after a while. Then he stood up, "The motion to promote you to Lance Corporal is denied, but I will be watching you, private. Another good performance and you might well be a Lance Corporal. That will be all, private."

I quickly got up and saluted. He saluted back, but the ODST still sat there, playing with his knife as if nothing happen in front of him.

* * *

Outdoor Conference Room, 2310 hours, local time

"All right, Thirty-First, simmer down," ordered Colonel Greshovic through a loudspeaker, considering the noise activity.

Everyone finally went quiet. This was the first time I saw the colonel in person.

"As you all know, three Covenant ships were destroyed at the cost of one of our destroyers along with two frigates. We lost more than a quarter of our fellow marines driving out those bastards from this continent. But enough of that," he paused to take a breather.

"About half an hour ago, the other three regiments had reported that the Covenant had oddly retreated without putting up much of a fight to Study City, more specifically to this building," he continued as he turned on the large screen behind him. The screen showed a very modern looking building that actually looked like a science facility at the edge of the city and it was bordering to the wilderness. A name suddenly popped up that read Advance Central Research & Development Facility.

"The Covenant forces on this continent had entrenched themselves within a hundred and fifty meters of this building. Our Prowler also reported that other ground forces had concentrated on the two poles of this planet. The brass thinks that our enemy had found something of value and they want to know what it is," he stopped and looked at us.

I looked around and I could see that the regiment had become much less.

"The brass wants all four regiments to attack this Covenant encampment. However, this attack is only diversionary. The real purpose of this diversion is to distract the Covenant so that a few ODST fire-teams could infiltrate the building and extracts the required information. The tank division, however, will not be participating in this mission as all of us will be focusing on a fast diversionary attack. Since we had participated most of the action so far and the previous engagement was unsatisfying for other regiments, our regiment will be the last one to attack the Covenant. The Thirty-First will be attacking here," said Colonel Greshovic, as he showed us the location, "the facility's backyard. The trees will obscure our position of attacking and will at least provide us some protection. The time frame for this mission is expected to be forty minutes."

"Sir, if we are involved in this attack, who will protect this base?" asked Captain Schuller.

"We will be leaving Third Battalion to do the job. Alright, that will be all. We will move out in forty minutes. Major Zhou, Major Reeves, brief your men on your specific duties."

"Yes, sir," they responded and saluted.

The colonel saluted back and left, but before he did, he addressed Major Zhou. "I'll be joining your battalion."

"It is an honour to have you among us, sir," said Major Zhou.

"Feeling okay, Mark?" asked Damian as he came to me.

"Still alive for one thing, Damian. I just feel glad that the spike didn't kill me at all."

"Glad you're still alive," said Sarah, smiling. I could see a sparkle in her eye.

* * *

2337 hours, local time

As I was fixing night vision goggles to my helmet, Philippe came to me already suited in his gear.

"Mark, can I ask you a question?" he asked nervously.

"Sure. What's on your mind?"

"You've known Sarah since boot camp, right?"

"I've seen her occasionally during boot camp but I didn't even try to get to know her at all at that time."

"Why not?"

"Why should I? Firstly, we were both strangers. Secondly, we were on a different training squad. And I don't even have much time to know her even if I tried," I said.

"Then, how did you get to know her?"

"Met her again on terminal, I didn't know we were going to use the same transport. So we just talk and we became friends."

"Do you know what her interests are? Favourite stuff and the like."

"We didn't come to that, Philippe. And what is this all about anyway?"

"Nothing, just wanted to know, that's all."

"You like Sarah a lot, don't you?"

He looked at me, "I thought of asking her for a date after this campaign. Wanted to take her out to a fancy restaurant or something like that."

"You know that she grew on a farmland, right? I don't know if it is useful, but try to keep things simple with her."

Philippe nodded and left.

* * *

250 meters from ACR&D Facility, 0019 hours, local time

"What do you see, Hoomer?" asked Lieutenant Castro.

"Less concentration of Covenant, sir. The diversion is working," she replied as she gave the binoculars to him.

"It is nice to see that," he said, as he looked through the binoculars.

"Lieutenant Castro, report."

"Aye, colonel. The Wraith tanks are not in sight, but there is a large Covenant detachment stationed here even though their numbers had been reduced. I don't know how many Grunts and Drones there are, but I do see an Elite Ultra and two Elite Majors. I also see at least nine Elite Minors."

"Anymore that I need to know of, lieutenant?"

"Yeah, they're also using some heavy ordnance, sir. I think we need to prepare for that."

"It is duly noted, lieutenant. Thank you," said Colonel Greshovic, as he looked at his two majors. Then he called to base and reported the same thing.

The colonel then nodded, "Okay Thirty-First, you all know your roles. Let's move out."

It was almost 70 seconds later when our fight began.

* * *

0051 hours, local time

"Third Squad?"

"Yes, Lieutenant Castro?"

"The ODSTs have accomplished their mission, but are having some trouble getting out the same way. They are coming to the backyard through the sewers now, but the point of exit is a hundred and twenty meters from the facility. I want your squad to secure their exit."

"But that is behind enemy lines, sir."

"That is why the whole platoon will cover you. Now go."

"Yes, sir."

5th Platoon fought through the enemy lines following the 3rd Squad. Rocket launchers were used to open up the enemy line and we went in. I kept on firing my weapon, sometimes aiming at Grunts, sometimes at Drones and occasionally a few lucky shots at the Jackals. I managed to catch a glimpse of an Elite Ultra lying on the ground.

It actually took us about 3 minutes to the point of exit, but it felt like it was a long time. Fortunately, as soon as we got there, 9 ODSTs got out of the only manhole in sight. One of them was actually carrying a small box.

Just as the last marine got out, Corporal Evans suddenly jerked and fell to the ground. I took a quick glance and saw blood oozing out below his neck. I immediately took his dog-tag and kept it in one of my empty magazine pouches.

"Damn it. Rally to me, Third Squad. Let's pull back now," ordered Sergeant Rluma. Before leaving Evans' body, I took Evans' remaining two fragmentation grenades, adding one to my remaining three and gave another to Hoomer.

Hoomer took it, looked at me and kept the grenade.

"Third Squad, cover our backs."

"Yes, lieutenant," responded Sergeant Rluma. "Third Squad, grenades."

We all threw our grenades and after all the explosions receded, we took the advantage of it and ran towards friendly lines. We took about half an hour to fight before we actually retreated to Continent Alpha.

* * *

0311 hours, local time, somewhere within the base, Continent Alpha

The whole 31st Marine Regiment, except for 3rd Battalion, was resting. Most of them were sleeping like babies. I understood their plight. All of us had been working for almost the whole day. Still, I was not that tired since I had rested in the hospital a few hours earlier. Seeing them pale and tired, it was as if I was watching a zombie movie using a holoprojector. If it wasn't for the fact that they were all still alive, I would have screamed and died out of fear.

I was sitting together with Marcus, Sarah, Damian and Susan. Somehow Susan became closed to us, even though it was under different circumstances. Sarah was still crying. In front of us were our canteens, as we were too damn tired to even go to the mess hall to take a drink. 10 minutes ago, we had paid tribute to Philippe.

Philippe was killed in the last engagement. So was Evans. I don't know about the other three regiments, but as far as I know, they were hit just as hard as us. I heard that the Thirty-First Marines had lost almost 1200 marines so far on the first day. We hadn't even been here for 24 hours and we already lost that much. Hearing the statistics was unbelievable to my ears, almost exaggerated, but it was a cold hard fact.

Looking at Sarah crying, I wondered if she knew that Philippe had some strong feelings for her. For all I knew though, Philippe could have already told her about it.

"Stewart?"

I turned towards the voice and it was Rluma.

"Come with me," he ordered and I obeyed.

"What's going on with you and your circle?"

"One of my friends died, sir, in the last battle."

"Sorry to hear that, Stewart. This isn't much, but I think you deserved it," said Rluma as he gave me a chevron with two rifles criss-crossing.

"Lance Corporal, sir?"

"Congratulations, Stewart. You will be my second-in-command too."

"Sir, I don't understand."

"So do I, but you do know that Hoomer is not suitable to lead. Take this as a test, Stewart. Pass it and you will become a Corporal."

"Thank you, sir," I replied and saluted.

He saluted back and left.

I looked at the rank and I don't know what to feel at all at that moment.


	5. Advance Campaign - Scouting

**AN: I don't own Halo and its franchise, only this story and its characters. Please read and review.**

Halo: My own life

Chapter 5 – Fifth Mission

Continent Alpha, Planet Advance, 0857 hours

I heard people say that if you let go of something that has been bothering your mind and body, you will feel as if a heavy burden had been lifted from your shoulders. In a way, I felt really damn good after releasing it in the lavatory.

"Where did you go?" Marcus asked.

"Well, I went to the toilet," I replied. "Anything happened around here?"

"Yeah, just received news that the other regiments had finally secured Continent Beta," said Quack, our corpswoman.

"That's good news, Kelly. Where's Rluma?"

"Meeting with the lieutenant. Why?"

"Just wondering where he is since I saw the First, Second, Fourth and Fifth Squads having their commanders with them."

I looked upon the sky and saw dark clouds. I could even hear thunder in the distance.

"Covenant ships haven't arrive in this system, have they?" I asked.

"Not yet," replied Marcus.

"How you guys holding up?" I asked.

All of them looked at me. "We're fine, Stewart," Quack responded.

"That's good to hear. So, what do you guys think was inside the box?" I asked.

"What are we playing now? A guessing game?" asked Hoomer, sarcastically.

"No, I was just wondering why the Covenant didn't destroy this planet immediately, like they did with the others. The damn Covies protected that building with their lives just to get whatever was inside that box. Not only that, they had also stationed a garrison on each of the two poles of this planet. Whatever they want to retrieve here, it must be very damn important."

"They still sent three frigates even though they know we would have reacted as soon as possible. I think the Covies knows what they want, but they themselves don't know what it is exactly. The Covies didn't expect it and we came," said Marcus.

"Didn't expect it?" I asked, without expecting any answers from Marcus, trying to figure out something.

But Marcus answered back, "Like you said, Mark, they came here to retrieve something important. But what they found here was something more significant than they expected. I think that is what kept the Covenant here until we arrived."

I looked at him, "Is that why they build those anti-aircraft batteries? A more permanent stay, perhaps?"

"Maybe," Marcus answered.

"How significant do you both think it is?" asked Quack.

"I don't know. It all depends on what the brass saw in that box. I can safely assumed, though, knowing that we are here and how important the box was to them, the Covenant would send at least seven ships," I said.

"Seven? You sure about that?" asked Hoomer.

"No, I'm not sure, Hoomer. But if I were them, I would have sent more resources to destroy my enemies to get back what is important to the nation," I countered. I then sat down next to my friend, "How's Sarah holding up, Marcus?"

"Better than I expected. She is a strong woman, that Sarah."

"Does she know how Philippe felt for her?"

"I don't know, Mark, but does it matter? Does it make any difference in her situation?"

"No. It doesn't matter, not anymore anyway," I replied. Not far away from where we sat, there were shallow graves for our fallen comrades-in-arms. Just an hour ago, Cal Evan's and Philippe Marneau's bodies were brought here and buried.

Seeing just a portion of those who died being buried here on this planet, finally made me understand what the old woman had said not so long ago. It was a damning thing to die on a planet you don't even know existed, and worse than that, they can't even meet their love ones or say anything before dying. I never thought about this at first, until I see them get buried. I wondered what their last thoughts were, but I hope it was pleasant enough for them to die peacefully.

"Third Squad," commanded Sergeant Rluma as he finally appeared a few minutes later.

We all paid attention to him.

"We got a new mission. The exact details will be discussed at the control room. Let's go."

All of us followed him. The control room was just like the field hospital, but the whole makeshift building was covered with canvas and filled with monitors, showing real-time maps and videos.

On one monitor, there were movements through the city streets using an onboard camera. I saw hand gestures and sudden appearances of marines in front of the camera and I figured the camera was fixed to a helmet of a squad leader.

There were already 12 marines waiting for the mission briefing too. Their patches showed that they were from 32nd Marine Regiment. About 15 seconds later, 4th Squad of 33rd Marine Regiment came in. All of us greeted each other.

"I wonder what kind of mission we will be having," I said, directing it to Rluma.

"Reconnaissance mission, Lance Corporal," replied Rluma. "That's what Lieutenant Castro told me."

While waiting for whoever it was to brief us about the mission, I turned my attention to the live video that caught my interest. Right now, the squad of marines was still moving through the city streets, stopping occasionally at a corner.

I was too focused on the live feed when there was a tap on my arm. I turned and saw Susan beginning to look at another direction. I glanced past her and saw a woman in her mid-30s standing before us, wearing a standard marine battle dress.

"I'm Lieutenant Olgin of the Thirtieth Marine Regiment, Intelligence Company. First of all, we are now officially part of Admiral Cole's Admiralty. The entire Combat Group Fox will be directly under his command and so will Combat Group Varsity."

"When did we become part of his command?" asked one marine.

I looked at the rank of the questioner. She was a Staff Sergeant from 1st Squad of the 32nd Marine Regiment.

"As of eighteen thirty hours yesterday. The rest of Combat Group Varsity will be joining us in three hours time reinforcing our ships and sending in much needed resources."

Everyone smiled.

"All right, we're here because we are given a reconnaissance mission."

"Continent Delta?" asked a sergeant from 2nd Squad from the same 32nd Marine Regiment.

"No, to the north and south of the pole. 3rd Squad of 31st Marines and 4th Squad of 33rd Marines will get the north pole while 1st and 2nd Squads of 32nd Marines will get the south."

"What about Continent Delta? Are we going to leave that place alone?" asked Sergeant Rluma.

"The Covenant already left the continent forty three minutes ago," Lieutenant Olgin replied as she glanced at her watch. "There is no point in doing recon on that continent anymore. Besides, the Thirtieth and the rest of the Thirty-Third are already doing it."

I could see the Fourth Squad smiling approvingly.

"According to our Prowler and with some help from our ships, the Covenant ground forces that was stationed at both the poles seems to have found something big and important."

"What did the Covenant find, sir?" I suddenly asked.

Everybody looked at me. I could see her eyes looking at my rank.

"That is what the brass wants us to find out, Lance Corporal," she said, as she turned on a holoprojector that was set on the table.

A planet was formed out of it and the lieutenant then pressed a few more buttons. The picture then changed to two, showing the north and the south of the planet's poles.

"Whatever they found, it is exactly in the middle. The Covenant had already excavated whatever it is, but preliminary reports say that the Covenant had found buildings. For the northern part, it looks like there is a slight turbulence as clouds can be seen moving at a faster pace. It would be pretty good cover to block out any sounds that any of our ships might make, so Pelicans will transport the Third and Fourth Squads there within two kilometres of their base," she said, as she paused to take a breather.

"For the south however, there don't seem to be any prevalent winds, so the First and Second Squads will land further out, about three kilometres away. The problem with the poles is that, any direction you look at, it is always the same. To solve this problem, sectors will be use for this to describe a location," she said as she took another breather.

"Third Squad, you will be scouting here in Sector Thirty-Four and Thirty-Five. It is on top of a cliff overlooking the Covenant base about seven hundred meters away. Fourth Squad, you guys will be in Sector Fifty-Eight. There should be a small hill overlooking the excavation site about six hundred away," she said.

She then turned to look at the southern pole, "First Squad, yours will be Sector Forty-Four. You will move on to scout the Covenant base about eight hundred meters away. Second Squad, you will go to Sector Fifty. The excavation site should be seven hundred meters in front of you."

"All of us are scouting within a kilometre of the enemy base. Won't the Covenant set up a patrolling perimeter?" asked the sergeant from the 4th Squad.

"A legitimate concern, but based on the preliminary reports, they don't seem to do it at all. It looks like they are concentrating most of their attention on the excavation site."

"If that is the case, shouldn't it be dangerous being at the site?" asked another sergeant from 1st Squad.

"Yes, it would be. Just stay low. The winter variant of the battle dress should help you guys along the way."

"Yes, sir," answered the sergeant, unsatisfied with the answer.

"Remember, go there, scout what it is and get out. That is all you need to do. Do not engage them, unless fired upon. Also, I want you marines to maintain radio silence. You should communicate within twenty meters of each other. The Covenant probably can't hear it, but it is better not to take any chances," she looked at us to make sure we understood it. "After what we've been through, I do not want any marines getting killed unnecessary."

"Yes, sir," we all replied quietly.

"Okay, for this mission, you are allowed to use only Mongoose vehicles. Each squad is also allowed to use M-Forty-One Rocket Launchers, just in case. Go to your respective supply officers to get what you need. They had been informed about this."

"Sir?" asked Rluma.

"Yes, Sergeant Rluma."

"Why didn't you choose the ODSTs to do this job? They are more suitable in doing this kind of thing."

"You all should know that the ODSTs are a pain in the ass, not only to the Covenant, but to us too. They refused doing this mission, under the reasoning that the Thirty-First Marine Regiment had saved their assess, especially when your Third Squad had lost a marine trying to secure their exit. They just wanted to give us a chance to shine."

"Why were we chosen?"

"A Pelican can only carry three Mongooses. There is where all of you guys come in."

Somehow I felt it was a lame excuse.

"Is that all?" asked the lieutenant.

"Yes, sir," answered Rluma.

She nodded, "Dismiss."

North Pole, Planet Advance, 1111 hours

It had been almost seventy minutes since we started our journey there. There were three Mongoose vehicles tied down to the cargo bay of the Pelican. I wondered if I would be driving one of the all-terrain vehicles. Still, we were lucky to eaten our breakfast before I went to the lavatory.

I looked around the cargo bay. All of us were wearing the arctic variant of the marine battle dress. Even all three Mongooses were white in colour. Each of us also wore balaclava on our heads, just covering the foreheads. The white marine helmet was resting on my lap and a polarized tactical glasses was inside. One thing I've noticed was that I could feel that the cargo bay was getting colder about 20 minutes ago. I could even see my own breath. All my life I never had been to a cold climate before. This was my first time to experience it and I'm looking forward to see the white covered ground and a bit of flying snow.

"All right, we will reach the two kilometre mark in one minute. Hoomer, Stewart and I will each take control of a Mongoose," said Rluma.

Marcus looked at me with a sinister grin and gave me a thumbs up. Both of us knew that it was already my turn to drive.

"Quack, you're with me. Hoomer, take Yang. Stewart, take Sum with you," Rluma commanded. He then pulled down his balaclava to cover his entire head.

I then pulled down my balaclava. I then tightened my collar and put on the polarized glasses. The Pelican had already started to slow down and descending as I placed my helmet on my head. I had just finished fastening my helmet when the Pelican finally landed.

We quickly unfastened our seat straps and the ones holding the Mongoose. We took our places and started the engines.

"Okay, sergeant, we will be here for ninety minutes. Get back here within that time or we'll head back without you," said the pilot.

Rluma looked over his shoulder, raised his hand and showed a thumb up. The bay doors then open, allowing the cold wind to come in. The winds were strong to enough to just cover any sounds, but it was never that strong to really blow vehicles.

"Follow my lead," ordered Rluma as he drove out.

Susan had already taken her place at the passenger's seat. I could feel the rocket launcher pinning slightly on my lower back. Both her hands were on my shoulders while her head was resting on my back. Through my glasses, I still could see what was in front of me, but there was also a map on the top right corner with three green dots moving towards a blue rectangular, our target cliff.

I never saw something so white as this before, nor felt this cold. Not only that, the sky looked so gray. Rluma was actually driving quite fast and I had to struggle a bit to keep up. Because of that, Susan's grip got tighter.

Cliff "The Blue Rectangular", North Pole, Planet Advance, 1124 hours

We finally reach a slope about 13 minutes later. According to the map, we had already arrived at the blue rectangle. It was a good thing that we had the communicators fixed to our ears inside our balaclavas, as I still could hear Rluma's orders, even though it was like a whisper.

"3rd Squad, dismount and run up that slope."

With winds like this, we ran up the slope with much effort. We finally reach the top in 15 minutes.

"Stewart, Sum, left flank. Hoomer, Yang, right flank."

Susan and I quickly moved to our position about 20 meters away from Rluma. I then took out my binoculars and looked through it. From my position, there were 2 Wraith tanks, supported by at least two dozen Grunts and lead by an Elite Minor at the base. I looked around to see anymore, but there were no other. I was glad for that.

"What do you see, Hoomer?" Rluma asked. I could hear the question, but not the answer.

"Stewart, what's happening at your side?"

I told him what I saw. Looking closer at the Elite, it looked like it was agitated. I assumed that the Elite Minor was eager to go to war, but was somehow stuck at playing defensive. Well, it was not that I haven't seen similar situations among UNSC marines too.

"All right Third Squad; let's go to Sector Thirty Five."

From a different part of the cliff, the Covenant base seemed to be further away. There was nothing much at all, except a white plain in front of me.

We spent about 20 minutes looking around, but there was still nothing. Rluma finally decided to head back to the Pelican as they had already passed the 20-minute mark. Going down the slope was actually much easier that we took about ten minutes.

Extraction Point, North Pole, Planet Advance, 1224 hours

There were seventeen minutes left on the mission window when we finally reached our Pelican. The bay doors opened before us and we parked our vehicles inside. Once we were inside however, the pilot came to the cargo bay.

"Marines, I have bad news."

"What is it?" asked Rluma.

"Covenant ships arrived in this system about fifteen minutes ago. Our big ships are engaging them right now."

"What about our reinforcements? They should be here right now, aren't they?" asked Rluma.

"According to base camp, they already did a few minutes ago. Varsity is sending a marine regiment to the North Pole and another one to the south. Each regiment also has a Spartan fire-team. I also received new orders. 3rd Squad is to continue their reconnaissance mission on the enemy base until relieved."

"How many Covenant ships are there?" I asked.

"Look, that information is the only thing they tell me. I don't know how many ships the enemy has or when will any ground forces be arriving here. So don't ask me anymore of this shit."

"Okay then, but first, I have to give in my report," said Rluma, as he followed the pilot.

"Two Spartan teams? Reach must have figured out what was inside that box," said Quack.

"I don't think so. We got hold of that box and Varsity was sent here AFTER Admiral Cole took Fox and Varsity into his Admiralty. I'm sure everyone can figure out that the Covenant would be sending in reinforcements after Fox destroyed their three ships seeing that this planet is very important," I said.

"You know, I think the reason Varsity is late was because of the Spartan teams," said Marcus.

"Whatever the reason, Marcus, it doesn't matter anymore. They are here now to help us out," I replied as we took out the Mongooses out of the Pelican again.

In my heart, I had a feeling that this campaign would be a shitty one.


	6. Advance Campaign - Ending

**AN: I don't own Halo and its franchise, only this story and its characters. Please read and review.**

Halo: My own life

Chapter 6 – The Ending of the Advance Campaign

Cliff "The Blue Rectangle", North Pole, Planet Advance, 1140 hours

We were back to the same spot, overlooking the building. This time, however, was a bit different. Previously, only the Elite was agitated, but now, all of them seemed to be moving excitedly. If I know that my own reinforcements had arrived, I would get excited too.

"Damn, what the fuck is inside that building that they are so desperate to get their hands on?" I asked aloud, more towards myself.

"Shut it, Stewart. We're here to scout for our own reinforcements, not to think," said Sergeant Rluma.

"Yes, sir."

I was beginning to wonder if the Spartans would be any useful if the Covenant managed to defeat our ships. If that happens, the Spartans would be as useless as us without air superiority. As much as I wanted to see them in action, it was easy to figure out that they concentrated more on ground warfare than in space warfare.

I don't really know what the Spartans were like, as I never seen them before. What I know about them were through rumours and hearsay. My first thought was of course, the Spartans were another branch of ODSTs with much better equipment or at the very least another type of Special Forces.

The more I think about it, the more I feel that the military was experimenting with new hardware. With that in mind, wasn't it risky using the hardware against the more advance Covenant with humanity's fate on the line? I'm also beginning to wonder on how the Spartans could achieve their impossible successes with just experimental equipment. As far as I know, no human being could ever achieve that kind of successes without having any casualties. These Spartans could either be highly-advanced robots or the military was trying to tone down whatever losses the Spartans had suffered.

The high winds were getting stronger that the mist and the flying snow were making our view more difficult to really see anything.

"Sir, my line of sight is getting bad. What should we do?" I shouted as the winds were getting louder.

"I'll patch in with our Pelican," replied Rluma.

Even though I couldn't hear him, by the silence I knew that Rluma was talking to the pilot. Looking through the binoculars, even with line of sight was slowly failing; I was still able to see the Covenant infantry and tanks pulling back closer to the base.

Then I saw a few things coming out from the snow about 100 metres from the base. It was hard to recognize at first as it was covered with snow, but when they shook it off, I quickly knew that they were the Jackals. It was no mistake with all those beaks and slender bodies. Seeing them right now made me thankful that we never went much nearer than we should.

It was already hard to hear anything in these winds, except for shouting at close range. As cloudy as it was, I suddenly saw a Pelican heading for the base. I never heard the gunship until they flew overhead. The gunship fired the guns and quickly hovered about 10 metres above the ground, while at the same time, 4 big looking men in armour jumped out with guns blazing without the help of any grappling line.

That was the first time I saw that special branch of military personnel first hand and it was incredible. They quickly dispatched the ground units and destroyed the 2 Wraith tanks. As quickly as they came, they were gone, stormed into whatever the building the Covenant was holding.

"Third Squad," as I heard Rluma calling out loudly, "new orders from command. We are to head back to base now."

"Sir, what about the reinforcements?" I asked.

"What about them, corporal?"

"Shouldn't we help them?"

"You saw how they do it and you think they need help? Come on 3rd Squad, let's go," said Rluma without waiting for my reply.

We kept a close distance with each other until we reach our Pelican. As we tucked into our seats, the sergeant came to me.

"Don't you ever question me like that, Corporal Stewart. Have you forgotten that we are supposed to reconnoitre only? And we were not given any further instructions to go beyond what we're supposed to do. Understand?"

"Understood, sir," I replied. _If we were given a stupid-ass order, would Rluma follow it? Would anybody?_ I don't really know for sure what to do if I were to receive such orders.

* * *

Base, Continent Alpha, 1400 hours

We took almost 2 hours because of turbulence to finally get back to base. What we saw there was unexpected. Everyone had already started packing things and loading into Pelicans.

"What the hell is going on here?" asked Hoomer, speaking out my mind.

"Report back to the lieutenant," ordered our squad leader.

Back at the tent, Rluma told Lieutenant Olgin of what we saw. We were the first squad there as the other 3 squads came in about a minute later.

"Thank you for your reports and with this, concludes your reconnaissance mission. Head back to your companies now," said the lieutenant.

"Oh look, the prodigal squad has finally come back to us," exclaimed a marine sergeant from 1st Squad.

We ignored the jest as the rest of the company laughed away. The company adjutant pointed us to another Pelican and our sergeant continued on talking while we head to our designated ship. To tell the truth, we don't really know what was happening and what we should do since most of the packing had already been done.

"Alright Third Squad, listen up," our sergeant called when he arrived a minute later. "Our ships are having a stalemate against the Covenant and Rear Admiral Fornay feels that we'll lose if we were to continue on. We are to withdraw from this system."

"We're supposed to pull back with our tails between our legs? We've been here for more than a day and the Rear Admiral decides to give up. What was the point of coming here in the first place while at the same time, lost four guys? Two of them were our commanding officers," said Hoomer.

"Well, we did what we came here for, didn't we, sir?" I asked. However, in my heart, I knew that Hoomer was trying to make sense in all of this. All of us were too.

"Yeah, we did. We'll be leaving in less than 17 minutes. If you want to go somewhere, do it now," said Rluma.

I quickly went to the lavatory and joined my squad in visiting the gravesite. Looking down at Sergeant Verril's grave reminded me of what he had told me before he died and I don't think I could forget that conversation. After visiting the other three, Marcus and I quickly went to Philippe Marneau's grave. Sarah Wright was already standing there alone.

"Did Damian visit Philippe?" Marcus asked.

"He was leaving when I arrived," replied Sarah.

All three of us then looked down at the grave. Every fallen marine at the gravesite were buried in the same manner, with the rifles sticking out and their helmets on the rifles.

"It is a bad thing that Philippe can't go home," said Sarah.

"It is a bad thing that not one of them is able to go home," I replied, indicating to the rest.

"Do you know how he felt for me?" she suddenly asked.

I looked at Marcus. "He told you his feelings for you, didn't he?"

She nodded.

"He asked me about you a few hours before he died, but it was enough to figure out the he was interested in you."

"Is there anything else that he asked?"

"That was all he asked."

Sarah then nodded sadly and left us. As she was leaving, my communicator beeped. I activated it and Rluma's voice came out.

"Where the hell are you and Marcus, Stewart? We're about to leave in 2 minutes."

"Sorry, sir. We will be right there."

I turned to Marcus and told him about it. We practically ran to our assigned Pelican. Before I went in, I looked around the base for the last time, feeling a bit sad that we had been through a lot on this planet even though it was just more than a day. I sighed in frustration and finally took my seat.


End file.
